Prior to the present invention, it was often desirable by coated paper producers to achieve high brightness in the final coated paper product in order to enhance the visual appearance of the paper. Thus, it has become established practice for paper producers to utilize high brightness pigments, such as calcium carbonate and titanium dioxide, and to incorporate fluorescent agents as components of paper coating formulations in order to increase the brightness of paper. These fluorescent agents (more commonly referred to as "optical brightener agents") act by absorbing light radiation waves in the ultraviolet wavelength of the spectrum and re-emitting these light waves in the visible spectrum.
The drawback to the use of these optical brightener agents (OBA) is that their efficiency, when used without other activity-enhancing adjuncts, is relatively poor. OBAs have no inherent affinity for pigments and synthetic lattices, and so in modern paper coatings they are relatively ineffective unless employed with some other component of the coating which has an affinity for the OBA. Thus, it has become an established practice in the paper industry to use OBAs in conjunction with other additives, known as "OBA carriers" that have been empirically established to enhance the OBA effectiveness in paper coatings.
Generally, OBA carriers that are presently being used commercially include polyvinyl alcohol and sodium carboxymethylcellulose. Other materials, noted in the literature that can enhance OBA activity, are: hydroxyethylcellulose, starch, casein, melamine formaldehyde resins, urea formaldehyde resins, and polyglycols. Many of these materials are co-binders commonly used in coatings, and some are cross-linking agents. Hence, these materials are useful tools to enable the paper industry to make efficient use of the OBAs.
It is desired simply that the combined use of OBAs with a selected carrier would provide a higher brightness value of coated paper than that otherwise obtained from the use of prior art OBA and carrier.
U.S. Pat. No. 5, 622,749 discloses the use of PVA or CMC as dispersing agent or auxiliaries with fluorescent whitening agents. Japanese publication JP 90023639 B discloses the use of PVA or its derivatives as a whitening aid with stibene type OBAs in order to prevent discoloration or yellowing by light or heat.
Japanese publication JP 61014979 (86) A discloses the use of water-soluble cellulose derivatives, such as hydroxyethylcellulose, as a carrier for an anionic florescent agent. German publication DE 20 17276-A discloses improving a composition containing a pigment, a binder, an anionic dispersion agent, optionally an OBA, and usual additives dispersed in water by the addition of polyvinylpyrrolidone for enhancing the effect of the OBA.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,892,675 discloses the use of sparingly water-soluble OBAs in coating compositions containing white pigment extenders such as clay and polyvinyl acetate latex as sole binding agent; cellulose ethers, such as CMC, are disclosed as thickeners for the formulation. Publication by J. D. Barnard entitled "The Role of OBAs and Crosslinking Agents" in Paper Technology, 33, No. 9, on pages 24 to 30 (1992) describes the role of OBAs and crosslinking agents in determining the brightness and water resistance of paper. The publication on page 25 lists all of the above noted carriers for OBAs.